Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Gandal Syllabus English 320, Advanced Fiction Writing, Keith Gandal

Open Educational Resources

Students in this course will learn the art of writing and rewriting short stories.

Friends In Fiction: Bonding With Fictional Characters Introduced Through Fictional Narrative Positively Affects And Interplays With The Psychology And Social Behaviors Of Adults To Influence Engagement, Vishnupriya Alavala

Auctus: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

Just as people can form relationships with each other, they can befriend and interact with characters. As broadening media outlets continue to introduce fictional characters, it is vital to understand the effects relationships with characters, referred to as parasocial phenomena, have on individuals. In turn, this will offer a new perspective on the effects of engaging with fiction. Bonding with fictional characters introduced through television or print narratives affects and interplays with the psychology and social behaviors of adults. Most studies support the positive effects of parasocial phenomena in terms of personality, mindset, and social skills. Other studies state that …

Antología Vol. Iii Crónica, Cuento, Microrrelato, Poesía Y Relato, Jose Higuera Lopez, Dejanira Alvarez Cardenas

CUNY Mexican Studies Institute

Creada por iniciativa del Instituto de Estudios Mexicanos de CUNY,

la Feria Internacional del Libro de la Ciudad de Nueva York es el espacio

por antonomasia de la promoción del español en la ciudad más

vibrante y cosmopolita de los Estados Unidos. Un español que se

mantiene vivo y cambiante por las muchas migraciones que componen

el entramado de la metrópoli y cuya vitalidad se ve reflejada en

la expresión escrita de la lengua; no solo en el terreno de la literatura

sino también en los de la academia y el periodismo.

La literatura producida en español en la ciudad …

Those Beneath, Dee Lancaster

Research Learning Experiences (RLEs)

The first chapter in a longer prose fiction project featuring a supernatural hike through Yellowstone National Park.

New Members, James F. Mcgrath

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

Καθαρός, The Pure: Setting Narrative In The Fourth-Century Roman Empire, Emma Branstetter

Honors Program Projects

This thesis illustrates the development of the Christian historical fiction novella named Καθαρός set in the early fourth century of Christian history closely following the events of the Great Persecution and its long-term effects on Christian communities in Asia Minor and North Africa. Previous Christian novels set in the Roman era primarily focus on the first century, and with the significant thematic potential found in later centuries after the life and resurrection of Christ, I embarked on this writing project. The research that affects my narrative is separated into four categories: the history and effects of Diocletian’s Great Persecution, fourth-century …

Untitled Novel On Indoctrination And Mentorship, Jacquelyn Ferris

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

A young man is alone in the company of his people. He searches and finds council from a stranger in a long red coat and his own search for a beaten rabbit; a deserter to his distant cause.

This is the first chapter to that much larger work in progress. We see our main character in a more peaceful headspace than what will soon come to him.

'The Game Is Afoot': An Exploration Of Mystery Novels And The Gentleman Detective, Anna Pietropaolo

Senior Honors Projects

In the mystery genre, The Gentleman Detective has become a kaleidoscopic icon depicted continuously over the past 200 years. The brilliant sleuth’s image has been used to highlight the contemporary culture of thoughts, faiths, and fears. As a longtime fan of the mystery genre, I wanted to explore this iconic figure and see some of the ways it could be used to reflect upon current values. There was no better way to do that than to write a book of my own, featuring a master of deduction but viewing them with an outside perspective, through the eyes of my main …

The One Way Bridge, Robert Hebert

Honors College

The One Way Bridge is a post apocalypse slice of life novel about seven survivors of a mysterious world ending event known as “The Silence.” The story primarily follows Lieu, a young transgirl and the only child among the seven, as she learns more about her found family and about herself in a world that has already ended. It explores the themes of loneliness, grief, self loathing and love, and the inevitable necessity of change.

College Slasher Novel, Jeff Hill

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This project was completed in hopes of creating a new novel that combines the research and craft worlds of composition and creative writing while merging the social worlds of teaching and campus Greek life, as well as making relevant contemporary commentary on the genres of satire and horror. In preparation, beyond necessary course work completion and time to outline, write, workshop, and revise, I read numerous novels and articles and watched dozens of films and television episodes as well as conducted research regarding current campus demographic to compose the best novel I could write in my time within the program. …

The Evans Family: Familial Relationships In George Eliot's Life And Fiction, Hailey S. Fischer

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Biographers of George Eliot, when writing about her childhood, have focused on her close and complicated relationships with two of the most important men in her life, her father Robert Evans and brother Isaac Evans. Less discussed are Eliot’s relationships with her immediate female family members, her mother Christiana Pearson Evans and her sister Christiana (Chrissey) Evans Clarke. This thesis reviews the predominant interpretations of Eliot’s relations with her father and brother. It also pulls together the known information about Christiana and Chrissey from several major biographies and adds new insights from Eliot's letters in combination with two of her …

Dolores' Last Will And Testament, Victoria Calderin

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis aims to analyze the intersectionality of points of view among generations of Cuban immigrants in Miami through the lens of fiction. In it, Carmen Velez, a Cuban American Construction Manager, faces a divorce and financial ruin which force her to return to the life she fled from in Miami. After her mother, Dolores, dies, Carmen must execute her estate. Following a dangerous whirlwind trip to Cuba, meeting her estranged father, and encountering the shadows of her mother’s former life as a revolutionary, Carmen comes to more deeply understand her family, and by extension, herself. Despite her loses, she …

Fair Folk, Jamie M. Good

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This is the outline for an upcoming novel centering retold Celtic fairy tales. The project includes research about fairy lore and Celtic mythology, as well as modern Irish customs surrounding cultural beliefs surrounding fairies. This story prioritizes the Pagan versions of folklore, rather than the more modern Victorian and Christian depictions of Celtic traditions and fairies.

The outline includes an introduction, short synopsis, short summaries and goals for fifty-four chapters (the full length of the novel), a list of characters, and a short reflection.

Synopsis:

Three children, Molly, Cal, and Jack, are abducted into the fairy realm. Molly and Cal …

Two Birds (An Ekphratic Poem) – For Deanna, Sara Anne Hook

Graduate Scholarship and Professional Work

No abstract provided.

The City Becomes Her: Poetry Collection, Sara Anne Hook

Graduate Scholarship and Professional Work

No abstract provided.

Paper Butterflies, Cali Dorszynski

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

A fictional novelette (long short story, about 50 pages) in frame tale form. The outer story follows the main character in third person as he adventures and interacts with his family. The inner story details one of his adventures as he narrates it to an audience.

The excerpt included here is the first chapter.

Human Error, Avery Werther

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

HUMAN ERROR is a science-fiction novel set in a future in which, to save the planet from environmental degradation, humans have been eradicated and replaced by “Syntho-sapiens.” These synthetic humans are engineered in labs to be not only physically superior to their evolutionary predecessors, but also equal in every way to each other. However, from the moment Cal-12 opens his eyes, he is different. He not only has heterochromia, a mutation of the eye color, but also a strong need for connection that his emotionless peers seem to lack. This need intensifies when he discovers a human woman named Thalia, …

Fog Town: Exploring The Novel-Writing Process, Spencer De Vries

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This project consisted of drafting a portion of a novel and working closely with an advisor to revise and polish two chapters, as well as creating a synopsis. The novel is about F.O., a reporter from Chicago who goes to stay with her mom when her father dies in a shipwreck. Once there, she starts noticing some inconsistencies around his death, as well as hearing about some other strange disappearances. Slowly, she is drawn into the mystery that connects them all. The attached portion is the presentation that reflected on the process, including a small sample of the revised chapter …

Brain Stew, Cullen Landolt, Mya Horn, Kenneth Miller, Aimee Pieper

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Brain Stew is an UMSL publication distributed bi-weekly in both digital and print formats. Its mission is to provide for the Pierre Laclede Honors College a forum for uncensored free thought, commentary, and creativity, as well as news and event listings from PLHCSA and other related campus organizations. The current Brain Stew staff consists of editors Cullen Landolt, Mya Horn, Kenny Miller and Aimee Pieper, with Dan Gerth serving as the faculty supervisor. During the semester, these people write their own content as well as garner submissions from Honors College students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The result is The Most …

Sundered: A Novel-In-Progress, Erik Renner

Honors Scholar Theses

Sundered: A Novel-in-Progress is a creative thesis that discusses the creative process involved in preparing for and writing a fiction novel. It is a thesis of four parts: a critical preface documenting the history of the project and breaking down the creative process involved; the prologue to the eponymous novel-in-progress; an annotated example of an in-progress first chapter; and an annotated transcript of a character sketch made of the book's protagonist. The novel itself is a post-apocalyptic western, with some additional steam-punk and historical influences. The core theme of the project revolves around finding a peaceful way to fix a …

Ghosts In The Wood Pile, Susannah Rand

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

GHOSTS IN THE WOOD PILE is a creative thesis comprised of an artist statement, statement of creative influences, and five short stories. The artist statement serves to depict my goals in writing this collection—namely, to provide investigatory, critical, and joyful fantasies for a young queer audience—and addresses what work still needs to be done to complete this collection. The collection itself explores dystopian and fantastical alternate realities in which characters struggle with desire, selfhood, and societal expectation. A sample of the collection is included here.

Advisor: Jennine Capo Crucet

The Secret History: The Statistics And Sociology Behind Fiction, Sam Wick

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Advised by Dr. Sara Vega, Sam used Donna Tartt's 'The Secret History' as an entry point for exploration into the statistical accuracy of fiction. Using NHANES data from the 2017-18 survey cycle, Sam sought to investigate the real-world health outcomes of individuals from the same demographic as the protagonist, and analyze the trends that emerged.

Hello_World: A New, Not-Quite-Animated Story (First Draft), Jack Harbick

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This story is meant for the medium of animation and is intended to act either as a pilot episode for a longer series or the beginning/skeleton of an animated film.

Synopsis: A robot awakens into a human-less world with seemingly no pre-programmed directive and a low battery. With the help of a new friend, a postcard, and some strange plants, they'll undertake a great journey to find whatever answers they can.

The Death Of Superman, Shane F. Mcfarlane

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN is an autobiographical novel that covers the years from 7 to 17 in the life of Shane McFarlane, who struggles to overcome the effects of his inner-city environment and an addict father in and out of incarceration. The title is a metaphor for the decaying presence of the narrator’s father in his and his older brother’s life and the resulting consequences of that absence.

With the narrator’s father in prison, new threats emerge, including his mother’s ruthless boyfriend and his brother’s attraction to the allure of fast money. The narrator must ultimately make decisions governed by …

The Mango Snores, Michael S. Garcia

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS

THE MANGO SNORES

by

Michael S. Garcia

Florida International University, 2021

Miami, Florida

Professor John Dufresne, Major Professor

Set in Miami at the start of the twenty-first century, THE MANGO SNORES is a seriocomic crime novel chronicling a week in the life of Sam Espada, Cuban-American writing professor and author of the Mango series of detective fiction. Reeling from the sudden dissolution of his marriage and the abject failure of his latest book, Sam finds himself embroiled in a plot right out of one of his novels when his newest pupil, private investigator Leonard Cobb, is …

Shadows Of The Morning Twilight, Philip A. Lapadula

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Shadows of the Morning Twilight is a collection of seven short stories and one novella about men who, facing transitions in their lives and in society, grapple with issues of sexual identity, residency, past traumas, and corruption. In the noir-influenced title novella, Nick Esposito, a mid-1970s journalism student, faces dangerous choices when he reports on the sale of a gay bar that is covertly owned by the mafia. Some characters see themselves as trapped. In “Final Score,” a former football player struggling with dementia finds a reason to live when he mentors a young gay man. In “Psyched,” “Phantoms of …

The Hard Way, David J. Sangiao-Parga

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Hard Way is a fiction thriller set in small-town West Virginia in 1997. It tells the story of a group of independent professional wrestlers who are waylaid in Chimney Corner while on their way to a big show in Richmond, Virginia. The group have a fight with a couple of local meth dealers at a diner in the middle of night. Other wrestlers come looking for them the next day. What happens after is a brutal fight for survival, as the wrestlers use all their skills to overcome a threat they were never prepared for.

Narrated in the third …

Futurs Utopiques Et Dystopiques : Comment La Fiction Aide À Penser L’Évolution, Ivan Magrin-Chagnolleau

Presidential Fellows Articles and Research

Cet article aborde le thème des futurs utopiques et dystopiques tel qu’il nous est transmis à travers la philosophie et la fiction (littérature et cinéma), et montre comment ces notions nous aident à penser l’évolution. Il propose une exploration historique des termes « utopie » et « dystopie », agrémentée d’exemples appartenant à la littérature, à la philosophie et au cinéma. L’article souligne aussi l’importance de réhabiliter l’utopie comme moyen d’inventer un futur radicalement différent.

Big Nothing: A Story About Bicycles And The Girls Who Ride Them In The Heart Of West Texas, Keziah Staska

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Their one-way road trip had started the day before when they left their home in San Bernardino for the final time. Paisley was afraid of moving away from the city she grew up in, but not for the same reasons many children her age would be. . So, her social life wasn’t her primary concern when it came time to abandon her home. Instead, she was afraid to leave San Bernardino because she had memorized all the perfect bike routes within a thirty-mile radius. On the other, the fear that their new home would have insufficient routes and roads compared …

Delivering Extinction, Tatum Cordy

Honors College Theses

Living during a human extinction is something no one is prepared for. No one thought humans would last this long. Even the sun dies eventually. A child’s drawing with a dripping smile. Sun rays heating soil into dust, melting metals, and large pine trees would light like matches. Smoke would rise into the air blocking out everything but the fires taking over the once livable landscape of Earth. Then, it would be over. The sun would explode. Simple and quick, painless for the few who wouldn’t try to resist their demise. Too bad humans were a few million years early. …